ADULTS in the Bradford district are less active than the average person in Yorkshire and the Humber, new figures reveal.

Sport England says that according to its Active Lives survey, two million more people are exercising regularly compared to 2016. But the research also shows that longstanding inequalities remain, with those living in deprived areas still less likely to be active.

Results from the survey showed that 57 per cent of 501 respondents aged over 16 in the Bradford district said they were active in the year to November, exercising for more than two-and-a-half hours a week – which was in line with the year before.

This was a lower rate than the Yorkshire and the Humber average, which showed 62 per cent of people had regular physical activity.

The Institute for Public Policy Research has pointed at a “growing divide in activity levels based on where someone lives”.

The figures also show that ten per cent of adults in Bradford district said they were "fairly active", exercising between 30 and 149 minutes a week.

Meanwhile, 32 per cent said they were inactive – down from 33 per cent the year before but up from 31 per cent in 2015-16.

Bradford Council says it is tackling the issue around adult exercise levels across the district.

Sarah Muckle, director of public health at the council, highlighted several initiatives in place to address the issue.

She said: “As is shown by the Active Lives survey carried out by Sport England, as well as in studies such as those carried out by Born in Bradford, it is a fact that people in deprived areas are less likely to engage in regular physical activity and more likely to suffer from poor health as a result of inactivity.

“Bradford Council and our partners are tackling the issue through initiatives such as Living Well’s 20 Minute Movement campaign and the Active Travel Social Prescribing project, which aims to get people walking, cycling, and wheeling more as part of their regular journeys.

“We have also awarded grant funding to more than 20 community groups that are focused on getting people active and improving physical as well as mental wellbeing."

She added: “In January 2024, the district launched the new physical activity strategy called Every Move Counts.

“The strategy has a comprehensive, co-produced, action plan that aims to tackle our inequalities relating to physical activity and sedentary behaviour.”